The present invention relates to a microfilm retrieval apparatus for retrieving a desired image from the images recorded on the microfilm.
A reader printer which is capable of retrieving a desired image from the images recorded on a microfilm, displaying and copying the image retrieved has been proposed.
In this reader printer, when a cassette reel on which the microfilm is wound is loaded in a loading section, one end of the microfilm is automatically discharged from the cassette reel by a so-called autoloading mechanism and wound on a take-up reel.
The take-up reel, on which the end of the microfilm is wound, comprises a take-up shaft and two disks supported by the take-up shaft, the distance between the two disks being set to a value smaller than the width at the end of the microfilm. The two disks are made of resin so as to be deformable in the direction of separation from each other.
When the end of the microfilm discharged from the cassette reel reaches the take-up reel, the end of the microfilm is held between the two disks in a state wherein the two disks are deformed by the end of the microfilm in the direction of separation from each other. The microfilm which is held between the two disks at its end is successively wound on the take-up shaft. On the other hand, the widths of microfilms depend upon standards, manufacturing companies and the like, for example, the width is set to 15 mm in the case of a FF cartridge, it is set to 16 mm on the ANSI standard, and it is set to 20.6 mm in the case of 3M Co., Ltd.
In this structure in which the end of the microfilm is held by the take-up shaft, since the two disks are deformed by the end of the microfilm in the direction of separation from each other so that the microfilm is held between the disks with the aid of elastic force, the width at the end of a microfilm, that can be wound, is specified. When a microfilm having one end with a width different from the specified width is wound, therefore, the end of the microfilm cannot be certainly wound by the take-up shaft.
In addition, since the widths at the ends of microfilms depend upon standards and manufacturing companies, as described above, a take-up reel which meets the width at one end of the microfilm used must be used. Although it is thus necessary for retrieval to install a take-up reel which meets the microfilm used in a retrieval apparatus and change for the reel, this work takes much time.